WAIT and see. They are three words Ryan Gamble has come to use quite often since arriving at Geelong at the end of 2005.

Near the end of his first year, 2006, Gamble played a single senior game, then waited to see what would happen in 2007.

As it turned out, not much unfolded, with injuries interrupting his year and the senior team proving a touch too tricky to break in to when he did get himself going.

At the start of last week there was uncertainty again. Knowing that Gary Ablett and Cameron Ling would miss the match against the Bulldogs, Gamble wondered whether he might be a replacement.

He wasn't named, and was preparing to push his case in one more VFL game when he walked into the team's meeting room on Friday to find that David Wojcinski was out with a sore Achilles and that his name was on the board.

It was an unexpected chance, but Gamble made the most of it. He slipped under the Bulldogs' guard yesterday getting only seven kicks, but scoring goals with four of them.

"Four goals is a good day's work," acknowledged coach Mark Thompson.

"He was lucky to be in, but you've got to take your opportunities and it's almost a little bit like it doesn't really matter who comes in, because the team provided him with opportunities to score goals.

"He certainly took them and played well. He marked well and kicked the goals, but he did get some good opportunities too."

After playing in seven of the Cats' first nine games this year and scoring goals in all but one of them, Gamble would have loved to have been out there more often. But, when going back to the VFL side, he has felt more confident, more prepared.

When you are a young player at Geelong, and Geelong is playing so well, there is a lot of waiting and seeing.

"Because this team's so good, if you play one bad game you can pretty much get kicked straight out," Gamble said.

"There's other boys playing well in the VFL who could also come straight in, so it's tough, but you can't get too stressed out about it or else it would just eat away at you.

"I wouldn't say it's frustrating, it's just that the club's so strong at the moment and it's just so hard for a young bloke coming through. But you've got to just try and do your best and see how you go, really."

It all means that, despite his handy haul — the best of his nine-game career — Gamble still expects to feel slightly nervous as he checks the team board again this week. If you can slot in at the last minute, he knows you can be shoved out just as quickly.

"That's exactly right. It's good to go out there and kick a few, but you never know about next week," he said. "There's other boys playing good footy and 'Wojo' was injured today but he could come back in. You just have to wait and see."